Europe will be hit harder by Brexit than Britain, German business chief says

One of Germany’s most prominent businessmen has said Brexit will be more difficult for the rest of Europe than it will for Britain and that leaving the bloc could make the UK more attractive to foreign investors.

Mathias Döpfner, chief executive of giant media company Axel Springer, said although the act of leaving the European Union would result in some short term pain for the UK, in three to five years it will be “better off than continental Europe”.

In an interview with the Financial Times, Mr Dopfner said he thought Britain would move towards a “more free market-oriented model, while Europe is step by step transforming into a transfer union” where financially successful countries prop up struggling ones.

Investors are put off by this, he said, and would be more likely to invest in Britain if it “can create an alternative”.

Although he said that in the short term the UK would suffer from currency fluctuations and a struggling property market, in the long term it would be better off outside the EU.

The comments are in contrast to most of the commentary that has emerged from Germany since the June 23 vote, with the country's political and business elite suggesting that Britain will struggle outside the bloc.

Last week, the country’s finance minister Wolfgang Schäuble slammed Boris Johnson, the foreign secretary, over comments made regarding the free movement of EU workers. Mr Johnson had previously suggested that the UK could have both a free trade deal and end free movement, which Mr Schäuble said would be contrary to the Lisbon treaty.

Axel Springer, one of Europe’s largest media companies, said last month that it was scaling back its revenue guidance for 2016 as a result of the uncertainty after the June referendum. Around 12pc of its earnings are derived in the UK.